Battelle Memorial Institute, a private nonprofit organization that conducts research in the physical, natural, and social sciences. Research is carried out on a contract basis for individuals; corporations; and municipal, state, and federal government agencies. Battelle began operating in 1929 under the terms of the endowment of Gordon Battelle, an Ohio industrialist. The institute has major laboratories at Columbus, Ohio; Richland, Washington; Geneva, Switzerland; and Frankfurt am Main, Germany. Headquarters are in Columbus.